Opportunity

Maternal morbidity is a significant problem in the United States, occurring in about 15-20 percent of births. Labor induction and cesarean delivery, in particular, are associated with higher rates of adverse health conditions.

A Penn clinician developed a calculator to predict how likely cesarean delivery is for individuals undergoing labor induction. Use of this calculator, which can help guide decision-making, is linked to lower rates of maternal morbidity and cesarean delivery and a reduction in racial disparities in patient satisfaction.

Providers who wish to use the calculator presently face several barriers: They must recognize when a patient is eligible, navigate to an external website, and enter the patient’s information to obtain the risk calculation.

Intervention

We partnered with the PennChart team to build an automated tool in the electronic health record that eliminates the major barriers to using the cesarean risk calculator. The tool identifies eligible patients, alerts OBGYN and family medicine providers, performs the cesarean risk calculation, and provides clinical guidance according to the result. 

Impact

A pilot study testing this intervention is currently underway. Results will be posted here once available.